Shah lays foundation for India’s first cooperative university in Gujarat, calls for education on coops at school level

Union Minister of Cooperation and Home Affairs Amit Shah laid the foundation stone for India’s first national cooperative university on Saturday, even while advocating for the inclusion of cooperative education at an earlier stage, in the secondary school curricula.

Addressing a gathering of farmers, cooperators, and government officials at the ceremony in Gujarat’s Anand — home of Amul, one of India’s biggest and best known cooperatives — Mr. Shah emphasised the Tribhuvan Sahkari University’s proposed role in fulfilling Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to strengthen the cooperative sector.  

“As envisioned by PM Modi, Tribhuvan Sahkari University will meet the need for trained professionals in cooperatives, bring transparency, foster innovation, and provide technical education in areas like accounting, marketing, and cooperative values — ensuring expertise alongside a spirit of service to the poor,” Mr. Shah said. 

High school subject

Launching a special course on cooperatives by the Central Board of Secondary Education, the Minister called for similar courses to be started by the State government as well.

“CBSE has started adding cooperatives to the syllabus. [Gujarat] Chief Minister Bhupendra Bhai Patel, the Vidhan Sabha Speaker, and the Education Minister, all three are present here. I request that just like CBSE, even the Gujarat government should add cooperatives as a subject in the curriculum in books for Classes 9 to 12. The Gujarat government should also add cooperatives as a subject in its curriculum so that common people know the importance of cooperatives,” Mr. Shah said.

Empowering rural India

The university has been named after Tribhuvandas Kishibhai Patel, a pioneer of the cooperative movement in India and a key figure behind the foundation of Amul. Patel was born in 1903 in Kheda, Anand, and died in 1994. Mr. Shah highlighted his legacy, recalling how the cooperative movement that began in Kheda district in 1946 under Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s guidance has now grown into an ₹80,000 crore enterprise involving 36 lakh women. 

The foundation laying event, held during Sardar Patel’s 150th birth anniversary year, also marked a key initiative in the International Year of Cooperatives. Mr. Shah described the university as the “epicentre of Sahkar se Samriddhi (Prosperity through Cooperation)”, which will empower rural India through education and innovation. 

Mr. Bhupendra Patel also hailed the initiative. “The foundation of India’s first cooperative university in Anand is the right step at the right time and place. This institution will nurture a generation committed to rural development and cooperative values, contributing to a developed India by 2047,” the Chief Minister said.  

The Tribhuvan Sahkari University will offer specialised courses in cooperative management, finance, law, and rural development. It aims to train over 20 lakh cooperative professionals in the next five years, including those from the dairy, fisheries, and agricultural credit societies. The university will also establish a dedicated research and development council to drive innovation in the cooperative sector, particularly for rural communities. Additionally, the university will connect over 200 existing cooperative institutions within four years to strengthen the sector’s educational framework.